Meet Jessica Bendinger and Michael Seligman creators of the new podcast series, Mob Queens. Jessica Bendinger is a Hollywood screenwriter and director. She wrote Bring It On and wrote & directed Stick It. Michael Seligman is a TV writer who's worked on shows such as RuPaul's Drag Race, Mysteries & Scandals and E! True Hollywood Story. Jessica and Michael are helping tell the story of the glittery, daring, and dangerous life of Anna Genovese — a 1950s mob wife by day and New York drag club maven by night. Follow along as they uncover Anna’s every move — from speakeasies to mob informants to drag queens. Check out season 1 of Mob Queens, out today!
Tell us a little about yourself. Who you are, where you’re from, what you do, and a little more about (company/project).
We have been friends for many years and joined forces as producers and hosts of the new podcast series MOB QUEENS. In Season One we explore the life of Anna Genovese -- a bad-ass mob wife turned 1950s drag club entrepreneur who stood up to her monster of a mobster husband -- and lived. This project is the result of 4+ years of research and development — we’re so excited to finally launch the podcast to listeners around the globe! If you like true crime, mysteries, powerful women, drag queens, mafia stories, this is for you!
What motivates you? Why do you do what you do?
We both love telling stories. We discovered Anna's story — almost by accident — and were instantly HOOKED! We couldn't get enough, and wondered — why has no one told this story before? So we decided to do it ourselves. As a woman and a gay male, we don't have a lot of fascinating, complicated, complex heroines in pop culture. And when you look at mob stories, they almost always revolve around men. So we wanted to bring this story to life for people like us who crave something other than traditional straight male heroes (no offense to straight male heroes, but there's room for other stories to be told too!).
What services did you purchase on Fiverr?
We've used Fiverr for a number of things — from designing a logo for a project Michael was developing called Cheers Queers to designing art for Mob Queens. One of the most exciting services we used was for a genealogist on Fiverr who helped us track down one of Anna Genovese's family members. That discovery took our podcast series in a new direction, and helped unlock a few mysteries that we were trying to solve.
How was the experience of working with Fiverr sellers?
What we love about working with Fiverr sellers is the ease of doing business. You can just tell the seller what you’re looking for, what you want to spend, and then you get results quickly and easily. And in the case of artwork, it's very easy to give feedback, discuss notes, and implement them on to the next draft. The platform is set up in a way that makes that feedback loop quick and easy. We're both super busy and juggle a lot, so it's very easy to just send a note from your phone and done!
Tell us about any type of personal relationship or "connection" you've developed with a Fiverr seller.
Michael used Peckham in England for several projects and always got great results with a quick turnaround. Now, he's our go-to for design projects. He's super professional, efficient and "gets it" -- which is a major plus when you're discussing design!
How does using Fiverr make your job easier?
Fiverr is a great way to outsource aspects of our project that we don't have the time or knowledge to do ourselves. We can simply look up what we need, find a seller that will work within our (usually very small) budget, and we are off the races! It's so simple!
Have a question for Jessica or Michael? Leave it in the comments below!
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